Sunnybrook Park
Managed by City of Wadena
65 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Myotus · CC BY 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Wadena
Wadena has 120 acres of parks, 27 for every 1,000 residents
93% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 4.7 miles of mapped trail cross Wadena, 0.8 per square mile of land. 3% of Wadena’s land is conserved, about 98 acres.
Ahead of 79% of U.S. towns · #113 of 274 in Minnesota. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
98 acres · of 5.5 sq mi of land
Trails
4.7 mi
0.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
120 ac
27 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
93%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.2 mi
2.2 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Wadena?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Wadena have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Wadena is ahead of 79% of U.S. towns, #113 of 274 in Minnesota. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Wadena’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land27 acres of park per 1,000 residents (120 acres) · MN 24 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home93% of residents within a half mile of a park · MN 95% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 79%
LessMore
Minnesota towns of 2,500+ (274)Ahead of 59%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Sunnybrook Park, with 0.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Tapley Park
Park
5 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Northwest Park
Managed by City of Wadena
3 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Burlington Northern Park
Managed by City of Wadena
3 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Sunnybrook Park65 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · City of Wadena
Tapley Park5 acres
Northwest Park3 acres · City of Wadena
Burlington Northern Park3 acres · City of Wadena
John M Ehlen Memorial Park1 acres · City of Wadena
Who protects it
98 conserved acres
3% of Wadena’s land. Who manages Wadena’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city98 ac
Local Park · 67 acLocal Recreation Area · 31 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunnybrook Park Local Park | Town or city | 50 | Open |
| Softball / Horseshoe Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 22 | Open |
| Tapley Park Local Park | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Sw Athletic Field Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Burlington Northern Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
Things to do
1 places to go in Wadena
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Campgrounds in Wadena
Sunnybrook City ParkFee · In Sunnybrook Park
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Leaf River Recreation Trail3.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
2.2 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.2 mi
off-road bike paths
Leaf River Recreation TrailBike route
3.3 miCourts & fields
10Baseball
10Tennis
2Basketball
1Football
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The walking year in Wadena
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.0 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 15.0 | 15.8 | 15.5 | 14.2 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.3 | 8.6 |
| High (°F) | 18 | 24 | 37 | 52 | 66 | 75 | 80 | 78 | 69 | 54 | 37 | 24 |
| Rain (in) | 0.7 | 0.7 | 1.2 | 2.2 | 3.3 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 2.6 | 1.2 | 0.8 |
January is the driest month (0.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 80 °F). 4.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Wadena →
Next door
Wadena and its neighbors
Wadena has the most mapped trails of the 4 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wadena | 3% | 0.8 | 27 | 93% | A− |
| Leaf River Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Wadena Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Compton Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Wadena
Where can I hike in Wadena?
The longest trail networks: Sunnybrook Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Wadena is conserved land?
3% of its land, against a typical 5% for a Minnesota town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Wadena’s trails?
Sunnybrook Park and Tapley Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Wadena?
2.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.2 of off-road paths. Named routes: Leaf River Recreation Trail.
Is there public land near Wadena?
2,209 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Wadena or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 120 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Wadena have?
Ahead of 79% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #113 of 274 in Minnesota. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Wadena neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →